SUNDAY NATION February 16, 2014 ANALYSIS | Obama set to host leaders in August as Japan and China fight for dominance World scrambles to court Africa as its economic renaissance beckons Western and Eastern power houses have trained their eyes on the continent once written off as ‘dark’ after experts forecast a steady rebound in its fortunes BY CIUGU MWAGIRU ciugumwagiru@yahoo.co.uk rendous crises, Western and other developed countries are becoming increasingly interested in carefully crafted entente with the continent once referred to as ‘dark’ and written off as the epitome of hopelessness. Already, North-South relations A are rapidly thawing, at least as far as African countries are concerned, as evidenced by recent reports that the European Union intends to lift sanctions imposed some years ago on headstrong President Robert Mugabe’s regime in the erstwhile isolated Zimbabwe. That aside, all kinds of suitors have in recent times been knocking on Africa’s doors, and there have been frenzied attempts to woo the continent on bended knee as it prepares for what has been billed as an extraordinary economic rebirth that nobody can afford to ignore. Not surprisingly, prospective investors have been streaming into Africa from all sorts of places, including China, Japan, South Korea and even India. Japan in particular has been vigorously challenging China’s dominance in African economic life. Predictably, a rise in Tokyo’s activities on the continent is reportedly worrying China, especially after Japan earlier this year pledged to pour US$32 billion in finance for African projects by 2018. As a show of its seriousness, Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe made state tours to Côte d’Ivoire, Mozambique and Ethiopia early last month. The whirlwind tour was only the third official visit by a serving Japanese premier to several African countries at once. The visits to key African countries followed one made by Abe last August to Djibouti as part of a tour of the Middle East. Pointedly, in Abidjan Abe reportedly hosted 13 heads of state from the Economic Community of West African States (Ecowas). ‘‘ s Africa’s economic prospects brighten despite its numerous and often hor- Meanwhile, other players in the developed world have been quick to organise events geared at ensuring they will not be left out of the jamboree heralded by the looming African economic renaissance. Among the major suitors nudging for relevance in what is practically a new scramble for Africa are the Breton Woods institutions that in years gone by used to control Africa’s economic life with carrot and stick approaches that were at best suspect and controversial. Now, bodies like the Interna- tional Monetary Fund (IMF) are desperately queuing for attention amid reports of the discovery of new resources in erstwhile impoverished and aid-dependent African countries. Significantly, the IMF has predicted that sub-Saharan Africa will see average growth of six Anticipated growth in sub-Saharan African economices in 2014 6pc per cent this year. That the region is becoming increasingly attractive for foreign investors has been confirmed by a study carried out by Germany’s Commerzbank, which recently reported that the persistent low global economic growth experienced in many parts of the world has not affected sub-Saharan Africa so far. The report further noted that the region today ranks among the world’s most dynamic in terms of economic prospects. “The international financial crisis has barely touched the region,” an official from the German institution has reportedly said. “With real economic growth of 5.0 percent in 2013 and an anticipated 6.0 percent in 2014, the region ranks number two behind Asia.” While noting that economic growth in the region has been impeded by a lack of infrastructure and other factors, Mr Rainer Schaefer, head of Commerzbank’s country risk analysis, said improvement and expansion of infrastructure were “key to raising the economic dynamism and boosting exports from the region”. International News 39 BRIEFLY BEIJING 11 killed as terrorists stage attack on China Eleven people died in an “at- tack” in China’s Xinjiang region on Friday, with eight “terrorists” shot dead by police and three blowing themselves up, having injured four people, authorities said. The incident in Aksu prefecture is the latest violence in the restive region home to mostly Muslim ethnic Uighurs. “Eight terrorists were killed by police and three by their own suicide bomb,” the Xinhua news agency said, citing police. Riding motorbikes and cars carrying LNG cylinders, the group approached police near a park in Wushi as they prepared to go on patrol. (AFP) BAGHDAD 18 Iraqi soldiers and police die in clashes Eighteen Iraqi soldiers and police have been killed in targeted attacks and clashes, officials and doctors said Saturday, as the country struggles to contain its worst violence in years. Meanwhile, militants Saturday held part of the northern town of Sulaiman Bek, after security forces withdrew despite reportedly making gains in a battle for control of the area the day before. In the city of Tikrit, gunmen lured a police colonel out of his house, shot him dead, and fled the area. And militants shot dead four soldiers and wounded three on the main highway in the area. (AFP) WASHINGTON Obama proposes $1bn climate change fund President Barack Obama pro- KAZUHIRO NOGI | AFP Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe. His government has pledged to pump over US$32 billion into African projects by 2018. Florian Witt, the head of Com- merzbank’s Africa department, added that sub-Saharan Africa could become a key player in environmentally friendly and cost-efficient energy technology and hence meet its fast-growing energy needs. It was also pointed out that most countries in the region have an abundance of raw materials and are already benefitting from high commodity prices and becoming lucrative growth markets that are rapidly attracting international interest. Further, it was noted that there are numerous opportunities in the region for foreign investors with relevant know-how in the areas of solar, wind and even biogas technology. “Even if there are still defi- The (IMF) conference will bring together political actors from across sub-Saharan Africa. . . to discuss the principal risks and opportunities Africa is facing today” Mr Roger Nord, IMF Africa Department cits in individual countries in democratisation and the efficiency of political institutions, political and economic stability has increased,” the bank’s study reportedly found. In the meantime, among the major events reportedly planned by the IMF is a major conference slated for next April in Maputo, Mozambique. Expected to host the finance ministers and central bank governors of some 50 African countries, it will also be attended by Christine Lagarde, the IMF managing director. The gathering will report- edly focus on how to sustain Africa’s impending economic boom. Among the top items on the agenda will be the issue of how the continent can finance its enormous transport and energy needs, as well as how resource extraction can benefit ordinary Africans. “The conference will bring together political actors from across sub-Saharan Africa. . . to discuss the principal risks and opportunities Africa is facing today,” Mr Roger Nord of the IMF’s Africa Department is on record as having said. Yet another major conference in the pipeline is one during which US President Barack Obama will host 47 leaders, mostly from sub-Sahara Africa, in August. According to US diplomatic sources, the conference to be held in Washington will focus on US-Africa relations. The meet will also discuss, among other things, the possible extension of the African Growth and Opportunity Act (Agoa), which was enacted to facilitate the export of African products to the US. posed Friday a $1 billion fund to mitigate the impact of climate change in the United States, and unveiled financing to combat drought parching swathes of California. The president landed in the Central Valley area and met farmers who have lost livestock and seen once fertile lands wither through lack of water. It is unclear whether the fund has much prospect of advancing past Republicans on Capitol Hill, where skepticism of the science of global warming and Mr Obama’s wider political agenda runs deep. (AFP) TOKYO Three dead as storms hit Japanese towns Japan’s road, rail and air travel services faced further disruptions Saturday, reports and officials said, after a fresh snow storm killed three people and injured 850 others following last week’s deadly blizzard. Snow began falling Friday morning in Tokyo and piled up to 26 centimetres by early Saturday, a week after the heaviest snowfall in decades left at least 11 people dead and more than 1,200 injured across the nation. A driver was killed Friday in a crash involving his car and a truck in Shiga while a farmer died after a tractor overturned on a snow-covered road in Oita. (AFP)